1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to tanning and, more particularly, to an automated tanning system.
2. Description of Related Art
A prior art automated vending system for use with tanning machines is the Scan-A-Tan system, for example. This system allows customers to use tanning machines 24 hours a day without supervision. The Scan-A-Tan system includes various components. A first component includes a software-based system used to dispense cards for storing monetary values. A second component includes a card activation station. A third component allows a customer to purchase additional monetary amounts, either via credit card or cash, and is configured to encode such amounts on the card. A fourth component is a card reader to allow the customer to pay for a 30 minute tanning session after scanning the card.
Such a prior art system is limited in that the tanning session time is fixed at 30 minutes. Additionally, the prior art system can only be used in non-regulated states (i.e., states that have no set FDA regulations with respect to tanning) due to the lack of safety features of such a system. It is, therefore, desirable to overcome the above problems and others by providing an automated tanning system and method that offers user-defined tanning programs, including varying intensities and durations, and provides safety features.